Zarif Slams US’ IRGC ‘Terrorist’ Label

Washington can’t salvage its raison d’etre for Middle East intervention – the continued existence of Daesh – by scapegoating Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which has been on the front lines of the fight against Daesh since that group was created, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Thursday.

“Losers of our region’s War on Terror cannot rescind history. Targeting #IRGC won’t revive ISIS and Nusra — their clients and very creations,” Zarif tweeted on Thursday. “Game over, ladies and gentlemen: time to face the fact that you’ve exhausted every wrong choice and scapegoating won’t be your panacea.”

“When @realdonaldtrump insisted that ‘Iran is killing ISIS’, exactly who did he think was doing the fighting & making the sacrifice?” the diplomat continued, noting that “ISIS would’ve held two Arab capitals & fielded a Terrorist Army on Europe’s doorstep had #IRGC not fought alongside brave peoples of Iraq & Syria.”

​The images accompanying Zarif’s tweets show news articles talking about how the US and Saudi Arabia have supported Daesh’s genesis, rise to prominence and continued war effort.

On April 8, the Trump administration declared the IRGC, an elite paramilitary unit formed during the 1979 Islamic Revolution, to be a terrorist entity — the first time Washington has ever branded a state military institution as such. The move confused many, especially since the Trump administration hasn’t offered a single example of the IRGC engaging in any terrorist actions.